XCF Converter
FileFlip converts XCF files into 62 other formats entirely inside your browser, using ImageMagick, MuPDF and Pandoc compiled to WebAssembly. The XCF file is never uploaded to a server: it is read off your disk, converted on your own machine, and saved back by the browser. There is no file-size limit and no account to create.
How do I convert an XCF file?#
- Drop your XCF file onto the converter at the top of this page, or click it to pick one from your computer.
- Choose the format you want out of it. FileFlip downloads the engine that conversion needs, once, and your browser caches it.
- Conversion starts the moment you pick the format, and the result is yours to download. The work happens in this tab, so nothing is uploaded and nothing is queued.
Is it safe to convert XCF files online?#
Yes, because nothing is uploaded. FileFlip converts XCF files inside the browser tab you already have open, using WebAssembly builds of the same engines a desktop converter would install. Your file is read from your own disk into the page's memory, and no request carrying it is ever made.
You do not have to take that on trust. Open your browser's network panel, run a conversion, and you will see the engine come down and your file go nowhere. There is no upload, no server-side copy, no retention window, and no account tied to what you converted.
How FileFlip works lists every engine, its version and its download size, and shows how to check for yourself that nothing leaves your machine.
What happens to a XCF file#
FileFlip converts XCF into 62 formats with ImageMagick, MuPDF and Pandoc, all of it inside the browser tab. Each conversion below names the engine it uses, what it downloads, and exactly what that conversion keeps or drops.
| Category | Image Files |
|---|---|
| File extension | .xcf |
| FileFlip support | Read only, so it is a source rather than a target |
| Conversions available | 62 |
| Engines | ImageMagick, MuPDF and Pandoc |
| Downloaded to your browser | 14.1 MB on the first conversion, then cached |
What is an XCF file?#
An XCF file is the working document format GIMP saves to, keeping an image's layers, layer masks, channels and paths independently editable instead of merging them into one picture.
Keep a project as XCF while it's still being edited in GIMP, so layers, masks and paths stay available for later changes.
Convert XCF to PNG or JPEG once the image is finished and needs to be viewed or shared outside GIMP, since almost nothing else reads the layered file.
The XCF file format reference covers the specification, the programs that open one, and what each conversion keeps or drops.
XCF questions people ask#
Can Photoshop open XCF files?
No, Photoshop doesn't support XCF natively. GIMP itself is the only editor with full-fidelity support, though the browser-based Photopea can open XCF files with much of their layer structure intact.
What happens to my layers when I export XCF to PNG or JPEG?
Exporting an XCF file to PNG or JPEG merges every layer into one flat image, bakes layer masks and channels permanently into the pixels, and rasterizes any text so it can no longer be edited. Paths and guides are dropped entirely, since neither format has anywhere to store them.
Why won't GIMP open my old XCF file, or an old GIMP open a new one?
XCF's structure has changed across GIMP versions: layer groups, added in GIMP 2.7, won't open in GIMP 2.6 or earlier, and a text layer created in modern GIMP degrades to a flat rasterized layer if opened in GIMP 1.2. Saving from a newer GIMP generally isn't safe to assume an older GIMP can read.
What's the difference between XCF and OpenRaster?
XCF is GIMP's own internal working format, built to mirror GIMP's internal engine and prone to changing between versions, while OpenRaster (.ora) is a format GIMP helped develop jointly with Krita specifically for interchange between different programs. GIMP's own documentation recommends OpenRaster over XCF when a layered file needs to move between tools or be archived long-term.